In the first world war, whilst with Lord Kitchener in Afganistan, my grandfather was a hangman for the Ox and Bucks light infantry, He didn't hang because he liked doing it. Generally, it was poor shellhocked buggers who did a runner and got caught and capped (shellshock was something not really understood then) but any one running away was a danger to their comrades if caught, taughtered and killed after possibly telling of important military info. The whole regiment was at risk. Very sad but one can understand why. For me, if Hicks was there in Afganistan then question why was he there ? The risks were too great for the US and OZZy guys. Don't tell me Hicks didn't know what he was doing ? He should have been spared Guantanamo. Firing squad, period ! That's the reality of it for me.
